We teach learnersA learner is an individual who is willing to learn and understand new things. Learning is a process of understanding and acquiring knowledge of new things and concepts. An individual can be a learner at any point in time they want. Factors like age, gender, etc., do not come in between the learning of the learner. using designDesign shapes ideas to become practical solutions and propositions for customers and users. Design is all around us, everything man made has been designed. The majority of designers work in teams, following a design brief and a process towards realising a commercially driven product, building, system or service approaches that explore the contexts of:
- Graphics
- Surface PatternA design in which lines, shapes, forms or colours are repeated. E.g. Regular, irregular, repeat, tessellating, symmetrical, natural, geometric, rotation, grid, rhythm, decorative, border. Pattern has three main meanings: 1) a decorative design, usually of a repeated motif or figure; 2) the composition or layout of an artwork; 3) the model or mould used for casting. In the first kind of definition, visual forms, or motifs are repeated, often in a systematic manner, such as in the repeated geometric forms found in Islamic art.
- IllustrationA discipline that seeks to explain a place, idea, product or object, or help to tell a story through figurative imagery
- Type
- Packaging
- Logo
- Stage Sets
- Products
- Websites
- Signs/Symbols
In artArt refers to a diverse range of human intellectual and expressive activities and the outcomes of those activities. Within this context art is further defined as visual art and includes painting, drawing, sculpture, printmaking, photography and work made using digital media. and design education, design can be defined as the intentional and purposeful processA series of actions, changes or operations performed in the making or creating of a product or outcomes. The procedures that one goes through in creating an art-work, e.g.: the process of printmaking. of developing and creating solutions to meet specific needs or problems.
It involves the application of creativeBeing creative or 'creativity' relates to or involves the use of the imagination or original ideas to create something. and critical thinkingThe ability to reason, ask questions, debate and challenge what is presented to you., visual and aesthetic solutions, along with technical skillsTechniques and attributes acquired through learning, engagement and practice and knowledgeFacts, information, and skills acquired through experience or education; the theoretical or practical understanding of a subject., to generate innovative and functionalThe use or uses to which a product, artefact, service or system can be put. outcomes.
Design encompasses various disciplines such as:
- Graphic DesignThe art or skill of combining text and pictures in advertisements, magazines, or books The art and profession of selecting and arranging visual elements — such as typography, images, symbols, and colours — to convey a message to an audience. This is a branch of design that is concerned with the communication of ideas and information by visual means.
- AdvertisingThe method by which products, processes, services and works of art, craft and design are promoted to potential customers, audiences, clients and users. Advertising depends strongly on disciplines such as graphics and illustration.
- Illustration
- Digital and Time-based media'Time-based media' refers to works of art which depend on technology and have duration as a dimension.
- Industrial Design
- Interior Design
- Product Design
- Fashion Design
- Textile Design
- JewelleryDecorative items used to adorn parts of the body: jewellers work in many different metals, stones and fabrics, some seeking to create items that fit carefully to a finger or ear lobe, some challenging the conventions and norms of body adornment
- Architecture
Product Design as a term refers to a wide range of products embracing the world of fashion and textilesPractical or decorative items made out of cloth, furniture, and household products but it can also include products for industry and all forms of engineering.
A designer can therefore design a stamp, a coin, a digital game, advertising materialsThe resources that artists, craftspeople and designers use to create work, to include thread, plastic, stone, wood, clay, paint and paper, a woven rug, a lamp, a book cover or a music sleeve, but the term design also applies to those areas normally associated with Design and Technology (D&T), such as engineering, furniture and mechanical product design.
When planning curricula, we sometimes neglect 'Design'. We should ask if it is appropriate to have an imbalance.
It is important to take cognisance of the potential of learners as designersPeople who are engaged in the production of functional products, services and systems, to develop their design capability and enable them to contribute in terms of design to society and the economy if they so wish. With careful planning and teaching design tasks can mirror projects and practice in design-related careers.
Design can be two-dimensional, virtual, three-dimensional, multi-dimensional and multi-sensory.
As art educators, we must be conscious that our students and learners might move into the creative mediaDifferent materials used by artists, such as paint, charcoal, clay and thread. Media is the plural of MEDIUM. In this context, it refers to the thing, substance or process you use to produce an artwork. For example, an oil painting is painted using the medium of oil paint; paint, ink and clay are different media. It is also used to refer to something that binds pigments together, such as oil, acrylic, gum, egg yolk or wax. and design industries as a designer, in any one of a myriad of areas of design practice including some areas that do not yet exist. Design industries are evolving very quickly.
It is helpful to remember that design as a specialist practice, historically emerged out of traditional fine arts and crafts practices, skills and techniquesA procedure, formula or routine by which an outcome or artwork is achieved, to include weaving thread into cloth with a darning needle, carving wood with a chisel and throwing clay on a wheel to make a pot.
These have evolved and been refined over the last two centuries. Like craftCraft can be designed as intelligent making. It is technically, materially and culturally informed. Craft is the designing and hand making of individual objects and artefacts, encouraging the development of intellectual, creative and practical skills, visual sensitivity and a working knowledge of tools, materials and systems. More about craft can be found here, design is not limited to aestheticsA term used to explore and explain the look and sensual appeal of a work of art, craft or design. The term embraces aspects of beauty across all the senses; touch, taste, smell, sight and sound. Aesthetics is a branch of philosophy that is mainly concerned with making judgements about what art is and is not. alone but also considers usabilityUsability can be described as the capacity of a system to provide a condition for its users to perform the tasks safely, effectively, and efficiently while enjoying the experience. If something is useful, it can be used to achieve a particular objective. Designers will, generally, aim to deliver useful products. Usable, on the other hand, refers to the ease of use for a particular product and the more usable a product is the more likely it is that it will be used., functionality, and human-centred designHuman-centred design is a problem-solving technique that puts real people at the center of the development process, enabling you to create products and services that resonate and are tailored to your audience's needs., including ergonomicsHuman factors and ergonomics is the application of psychological and physiological principles to the engineering and design of products, processes, and systems. Ergonomics can roughly be defined as the study of people in their working environment. More specifically, an ergonomist designs or modifies the work to fit the worker, not the other way around. The goal is to eliminate discomfort and risk of injury due to work and anthropometricsAnthropometry is the science that defines physical measures of a person's size, form, and functional capacities. Anthropometry refers to the measurement of the human individual. An early tool of physical anthropology, it has been used for identification, for the purposes of understanding human physical variation, in paleoanthropology and in various attempts to correlate physical with racial and psychological traits..
Design therefore involves careful consideration of all the artistic elements e.g. shapeShapes are two-dimensional. Positive shapes represent solid objects and negative shapes show the surrounding space. Geometric shapes are perfect and regular. Organic shapes are irregular and natural., formForm refers to three dimensional objects. While shapes have two dimensions (height and width), forms have three dimensions (height, width and depth). The overall unity of the visual elements in an art work; it is usually contrasted with content. Form is sometimes used to refer to the three dimensional aspect of an art work, as opposed to shape, which is seen as referring to two dimensional aspects., surface and colours, as well as compositionThe combination of a selection of distinct elements to work towards creating a whole image or form. The arrangement of shapes, colours, textures, marks and lines in a painting. A composition is something that is put together - it is an arrangement of different elements. In art, the visual elements are combined by paying attention to things such as balance, harmony, rhythm and contrast to give a unified whole. Sometimes composition is used to refer to one piece of art work, such as a painting, communication, and message (rather than meaning), but also materials, spatial relationships, human interface issues and environmental, sustainability, moral and ethical design solutions.
Applications include:
- Research/Investigate
- Imagine
- Iterate
- Ideate/Imagine
- Refine/Edit
- Explore
- Evaluate
- Prototype
- Model
- Design and Make
Applied and real-world products which communicate/function using digital, virtual and diverse physical media may include:
- Inks
- Paints
- Markers
- Fine-Line
- Flat ColourChoices of colour and the relationships between colours have a huge influence on how a piece or art or design looks and feels and the emotions it provokes. Colour is made up of different aspects. The most useful terms used to describe these aspects are probably: hue, tone, saturation, complementary, analogous, tint, shade, primary and secondary.
- Paper
- Card
- Board
- Film
- Chemicals
- Fabric
- Silk-screen
- Stencil
- Batik
- Plastics
- Tape
- Stamp
The above materials and processes can be used to explore how to:
- Draft
- SketchA rough, first, or quick drawing or painting to assist in exploring and planning a more finished art work. A means of information gathering
- Design
- Cut
- Crease
- Fold
- Prototype
- Illustrate
- Select
- PaintA coloured substance that can be thickened or thinned and spread over surfaces. Paint can be water soluble, oil or plastic based, and have opaque or transparent qualities. For further information please follow thus link. Paint is made up from three main things: pigment, to give it colour; a medium, (such as oil) which is used to support the pigment; and 38 something to thin it down, such as water or turpentine.
- Colour
- Construct
- Assemble
- Communicate
- Explain
- Research
- Respond
- Iterate
- Review
- Evaluate
We should endeavour to carry out process steps through:
- Design Brief Analysis
- Market Research
- Mood-Boarding
- Ideation
- Thumbnailing
- Concept Development
- Visual Exploration
- Concept Refinement
- Client Interaction and Approval
References
For an analysis of Designerly thinking see Gary Granville, Emma Creighton and Fiona Byrne In Ash & Carr (edited) CreativityCreativity is a characteristic of someone or some process that forms something new and valuable. The created item may be intangible or a physical object. Scholarly interest in creativity is found in a number of disciplines, primarily psychology, business studies, and cognitive science. Creativity is a tendency to generate, make or recognise ideas, propositions and possibilities that bring into existence something new, innovative or different. Imaginative activity fashioned so as to produce outcomes that are both original and of value. Creativity is the ability to create items that inspire and inform others, often in aesthetically pleasing ways. Creativity is thinking outside of society's norm. It is being able to express oneself in different varieties of arts - painting, poetry, sculpture, style, fashion, etc., Designerly Thinking and the Wicked Problems of Life - Practical Guide to Teaching Art and Design in the Secondary School. Routledge (2023)
